Abstract
Tools to assess intake among children in Latin America are limited. We developed and assessed the reproducibility and validity of a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) administered to children, adolescents, and their caregivers in Lima, Peru. We conducted 24-h diet recalls (DRs) and focus groups to develop a locally-tailored FFQ prototype for children aged 0–14 years. To validate the FFQ, we administered two FFQs and three DRs to children and/or their caregivers (N = 120) over six months. We examined FFQ reproducibility by quartile agreement and Pearson correlation coefficients, and validity by quartile agreement and correlation with DRs. For reproducibility, quartile agreement ranged from 60–77% with correlations highest for vitamins A and C (0.31). Age-adjusted correlations for the mean DR and the second-administered FFQ were highest in the 0–7 age group, in which the majority of caregivers completed the FFQ on behalf of the child (total fat; 0.67) and in the 8–14 age group, in which both the child and caregiver completed the FFQ together (calcium, niacin; 0.54); correlations were <0.10 for most nutrients in the 8–14 age group in which the caregiver completed the FFQ on the child’s behalf. The FFQ was reproducible and the first developed and validated to assess various nutrients in children and adolescents in Peru.
Highlights
A significant proportion of disease and death can be attributed to suboptimal nutrition
We developed and implemented a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) designed for children and adolescents living in urban Peru and assessed the FFQ’s reproducibility and relative validity as compared to 24-h diet recalls (DR)
Based on findings from the preliminary DRs and focus groups, we developed the FFQ prototype following the structure of the Harvard semi-quantitative FFQ, which has previously been implemented in Latin America, including Mexico and Costa Rica [17,18]
Summary
A significant proportion of disease and death can be attributed to suboptimal nutrition. Assessment of intake relies on validation of tools designed for and implemented in a target population. FFQs are both practical and efficient to administer, making them a popular assessment method in research studies involving long-term diet; few FFQs have been designed or validated for use in children and adolescents, especially in Latin America [6,7,8]. The lack of tools for children and adolescents validated in a variety of settings may be due to challenges in assessing intake in a group with rapidly changing dietary patterns. We developed and implemented a semi-quantitative FFQ designed for children and adolescents living in urban Peru and assessed the FFQ’s reproducibility and relative validity as compared to 24-h diet recalls (DR)
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